Staffing News

3 tips for negotiating a salary

3/14/2019

You've already completed a lot if you've gone through the whole process of applying for an open position, interviewing with a hiring manager - often more than once - and finally receiving a job offer. However, even once you've been offered the position, there's still one last thing to do: Make sure you're well compensated.

In a lot of cases, you'll have a bit of wiggle room to negotiate a stronger salary, and every little bit helps more than you might think. With that in mind, here are a few tips that should help you make as much money as possible:

1) Give them a range of options

Inflexibility when it comes to a salary negotiation is rarely a good idea, so you would be wise to present a range of a few thousand dollars in which your preferred salary lies, according to Glassdoor. If, for example, you want to make $55,000 per year at your new job, perhaps offering a range of $54,000 to $57,000 will give you the opportunity to make more or less what you hope for, but maybe a bit more as well.

At the same time, however, it's important to understand that you might also be able to negotiate for better benefits if they offer the low end of your preferred salary range, so finding the right balance is key.

2) Show your confidence, with help

Usually, these salary negotiations aren't done in person, and instead are done via email or telephone. According to The Muse, this gives you the opportunity to refer to notes - such as some important talking points or some carefully researched salary information about people in your field or with the exact position you're being offered - that help you feel a bit more confident in your approach.

However, with that confidence, you also have to make sure you're willing to walk the walk and, if the company isn't meeting your demands, say, "Thanks but no thanks." After all, showing your self-assured understanding of your own value doesn't do much good if you just accept whatever salary is offered.

3) Know what not to say

Finally, when dealing with a salary negotiation, it's important to know what kinds of things you can say that would end up being a negative, according to HR expert Liz Ryan, writing for Forbes. For example, saying why you need to make a certain amount (i.e. "I have a lot of expenses") is rarely a good idea, and so is saying that a number of other companies are also trying to hire you. This is also true of once again highlighting your qualifications, since they should already be well-acquainted with those standards, and that's why they're trying to hire you.

Instead, as long as you remain flexible and honest about what kind of salary you're looking for and what you're willing to accept, the negotiation should go well and usually get you something akin to what you think you're worth. Going in with that knowledge alone should help you find the best possible negotiating tactics.